The present invention relates generally to network communications, and more particularly, but not exclusively, to an apparatus, system, and method for automatically managing a microphone volume for audio messages, such as a Voice over Internet Protocol (VOIP) over a network.
Internet Protocol (IP) Telephony, also known as VOIP, is a technology that makes it possible to have a voice conversation over an IP network, such as the Internet, instead of a dedicated voice transmission line.
Depending on the service, one way to place a VOIP call is to employ specialized phones, sometimes called IP Phones, or VOIP phones, that may look like a normal phone. Such VOIP phones may connect to the network through an RJ-45 connector, or operate through a wireless connection.
Because VOIP make it possible to have voice conversations over IP networks, VOIP allows for a cost effective alternative to the traditional public switched telephone networks (PSTNs). Because of its relatively lower costs and ease of use, VOIP phone services have been rapidly increasing in popularity. With such an increase in popularity, there has been an increased desire to be able to integrate at least some of the VOIP features with a variety of other communication services.
However, during a communications between parties, perhaps when at least one of the parties is speaking, or otherwise providing an audio communications, their microphone volume may be adjusted improperly. A possible result is that the party with the improperly adjusted volume may believe that a message is being sent properly, when it might not be the case. For example, consider where the party is attempting to leave a voice mail message, or other audio message. When their microphone's volume is improperly adjusted, the voice mail message, or other audio message, could be sent at such a volume that a listener might not be able to adequately understand the voice mail message or other audio message. This could be the case even when the listener attempts to adjust a volume to a speaker device. In some instances, volume adjustments to the speaker device might even result in amplifying background noise, making it more difficult to understand the voice mail message, or other audio message. Thus, it is with respect to these considerations and others that the present invention has been made.